The Heart Remembers
by Nauthiz
Summary: Arthur remembers Ealdor, and he'll hold onto those memories for eternity. Set during ep1.10 'The Moment of Truth'. Can be read as Pre-slash or friendship.


_God gave us memory so that we might have roses in December._  
_- J.M. Barrie_

Arthur remembered Ealdor, even if he couldn't quite think why. There was something overwhelmingly familiar about the small village that bothered him for the majority of his first day there, until it hit him in the evening.

He had been there before.

The realisation was like a dam had broken in his mind; memories of his travels to Ealdor and beyond when he was just a boy flooded in, consuming him.

MERLINMERLIN

_He couldn't have been older than twelve, yet his father had sent him to meet King Cendred's daughter, the Princess Clarine, for a potential betrothal to unite the two kingdoms. The young Arthur had not been happy, he had no desire at that tender age to see the advantage of such a match and so he had spent the entire week before their departure sulking. Arthur seemed to recall he'd shouted quite a bit too, but he'd been thoroughly punished for such unfitting behaviour, so that was best forgotten._

_Tousled, blond hair fell boyishly into Arthur's eyes as he'd pouted scowled, arms crossed tightly over his chest, in the banquet hall during their leaving feast. Arthur had been determined not to enjoy the feast, although the food smelled delicious, so he had ignored his father and Morgana (she deserved it for her witty remarks) throughout the whole event. Arthur didn't want to be married, didn't want to meet future brides, didn't want to be Camelot's only prince. Arthur just wanted to be a normal boy, without hours upon hours of training every day, without 'responsibilities to his kingdom'. Was it so much to ask that he be allowed time to be a boy?  
So, when their party had stopped in that small village- Ealdor- in need of medical help after bandits had ambushed them, Arthur seized his chance. He hid away in the boundary of the nearby forest with two other boys. Both of whom were around his age, both of whom were allowed to have fun._Arthur didn't remember names, it was much too long ago, he just remembers a shock of dark hair against luminescent skin, bright eyes and a ridiculous smile. _Merlin_,his subconscious supplies. That would make the other boy Will, Arthur acknowledged, the hostile young man who hadn't stopped glaring at him since he'd arrived in Ealdor.

_For the rest of the morning, his father's knights had rested and restocked supplies and Arthur got to pretend he was a normal boy. He'd had endless fun with his two companion, playing in the trees and fields until-_

_"Prince Arthur!" It was Sir Geraint, "We must press on if we're to reach King Cendred's keep before nightfall." Arthur scowled at him, but followed dutifully to the horses. He'd risk incurring his father's displeasure if he disobeyed Sir Geraint. Arthur hadn't missed the way his newfound friend's eyes shuttered at his name and he was glad he hadn't told them before, it had been nice to have friends- even for a brief time._

_He had never said goodbye_.  
The thought struck Arthur the following morning, as he stood teaching a dozen or so villagers the basics of fighting. He was met with a deep regret for it. They hadn't known it then, but in a few short hours, the two boys had become the closest thing to a friend Arthur had ever had during his childhood. He wondered if Merlin even remembered befriending him during his short visit to Ealdor. He doubted it, Merlin's childhood was likely filled with friends and fun memories, this memory could be nothing noteworthy in all that.

_The rest of the trip had gone awfully. The young prince had spilled Sir Cador's ale over Princess Clarine's dress and tripped her as she left the table- accidentally, of course, but that did not stop his cheeks from blazing red in humiliation at his own awkwardness. They had left Cendred's castle the following day. Arthur would likely not forget the dressing down he received from his father when they arrived back in Camelot._

MERLINMERLIN

The fight with Kanan's men had ended better than Arthur had hoped for- Merlin and his mother were well- but as he watched the flickering pyre that was slowly burning Merlin's best friend, he felt a pang of grief for the boy he had met all those years ago. He couldn't look at Merlin now, the tears gathering in those expressive eyes sent a sharp pain through his chest. He wrapped an arm tightly around Merlin's thin shoulders and pressed his nose to dark hair, offering silent support in the only way he knew. It wasn't until he lay in Hunith's hut, Merlin sleeping at his side, that he realised something. Merlin had been the closest thing he had to a true friend then, he was his only true friend now and if he was Arthur's only true friend for all the years to come, Arthur would be happy.

**Please excuse the shouty pagebreaks, FF and I have an ongoing disagreement with this and it's currently making everything else disappear.**

**Thanks for reading!**


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